Translator: CinderTL
Time flowed slowly. Fueled by his innate ability, Feng Qi's injuries rapidly healed.
The fine cracks in his bones gradually closed, and his fractured ribs began to realign.
Lying on the ground, gazing at the hazy Blood Moon, he began to ponder a question.
In this timeline, he had become a historical figure. Why, then, did no one know he would return in the future?
Even if he had died young without leaving any records, the Scarlet Research Institute, which had collaborated with him, should have passed down the knowledge of his return 1,500 years later.
Yet the soldiers of the Star City Garrison clearly knew nothing of this.
Unable to access the database to review historical records or email archives, he couldn't find the answer.
As he pondered, two hypotheses emerged.
First, the Scarlet Research Institute might have been destroyed early in its conflict with the Technology Research Institute. Even if some records survived, they could have been lost or archived over time, failing to capture the attention of future generations.
Second, the Scarlet Research Institute might have assumed that the future world he would arrive in would still be a domain-corrupted wasteland, where humanity had long been extinct. Therefore, they might not have preserved any information to verify his identity.
After all, every time he had traversed through time before, he had arrived at the end of Human Civilization. Even he hadn't anticipated such a drastic change in this Dream Realm.
So, it was understandable that he hadn't considered this possibility.
Besides these two hypotheses, there might be other reasons.
The problem now was that he couldn't prove he was Feng Qi.
He faced two options:
First, abandon this Future Line, return to the Real World, and meticulously plan for the future. He needed to ensure his future self left crucial information for the Future People, informing them of his return 1,500 years later.
That way, when he re-entered the Dream Realm through a Future Line confronting the Technology Research Institute, he could enter the Star City Shelter without any obstacles.
Alternatively, if he didn't want to return to the Real World and replan, he could only hope that his bloodline evolution points would reach 1,000, triggering his next evolution.
His current bloodline evolution points stood at 852/1000.
By killing approximately three more domain creatures, he could initiate his bloodline advancement.
At that point, unexpected things might happen to him, perhaps even the possibility of regaining his human form.
You could also turn into a hideous, muscle-bound monster with arms as thick as that tree beside you, a green face, fangs, and a blood-red maw that could scare the neighbor's kid into crying for three days and nights.
Feng Qi: ...
"Can't you say something nice for once?" he snapped, irritated.
Just giving you a reality check. The higher your expectations, the greater the disappointment when things go wrong. What makes you so sure you'll evolve into a human? Why not a monster?
"Pah!"
You filthy idiot! Where did you learn to spit like that? Disgusting.
"From an idiot."
Amidst their usual bickering, Feng Qi's injuries had nearly healed.
He slowly straightened up, stretching with a groan. His dislocated bones cracked and popped, sending a sharp pain through him that made him grimace.
Gazing toward Star City Shelter, he felt a flicker of solace at the sight of the statue standing before the Iron City Wall.
Though he'd been chased relentlessly by domain creatures and nearly blown to smithereens, at least his long struggle had finally yielded a glimmer of hope.
He believed that if he kept striving, he would one day witness the glorious future he envisioned.
Ever the optimist, he grinned and strode deeper into the domain world.
This was the first time he'd ventured westward since entering the Dream Realm.
Fortunately, the Eerie Mist hadn't yet spread to this area. Otherwise, he felt that even if he had a hundred lives, they wouldn't be enough to lose.
Apart from the dim lighting, the path ahead didn't differ much from the Real World.
However, the vegetation along the way was withered, and the entire area was eerily silent.
Having long grown accustomed to such environments, he felt little emotional disturbance.
As he advanced, he encountered no domain creatures. Instead, a flock of crow-like Domain Derivative Creatures circled overhead, their raucous cries piercing the silence.
Unable to reach these Domain Derivative Creatures, he had no choice but to abandon the attempt.
Without his Blood Source Ability, he felt that hunting domain creatures with psychokinesis alone would be exceedingly difficult.
Still, he wanted to try.
This life was too precious to waste, and giving up wasn't in his nature.
As he moved forward, he remained highly vigilant, constantly scanning for domain creatures lurking in the shadows, ready to ambush him.
Yet after a thorough search, he found no trace of any domain creatures, leaving him bewildered.
"Narrator, come out and search for nearby domain creatures. Find me the weakest one!"
"With your arrogant attitude, I thought you'd want to fight the strongest. But you're using that same arrogant tone to ask for the weakest? Pathetic!"
"Get to work!"
This time, the Narrator didn't respond. After a few seconds, its voice echoed in Feng Qi's mind:
At eleven o'clock, there's a weakling. Let's go kill it!
Hearing this, Feng Qi immediately strode toward the eleven o'clock direction.
Moments later, he discovered the domain creature the Narrator had mentioned near a twisted tree.
The creature resembled a hedgehog—or rather, a giant hedgehog. Its back and sides were covered in sharp quills, and its limbs were short and stubby. It was currently digging a hole.
Suddenly sensing danger, it turned to face Feng Qi.
Instantly, the quills on its back bristled like raised fur, and a low growl rumbled from its throat, as if warning him to back off.
Without hesitation, Feng Qi waved his hand forward, unleashing a surge of psychokinesis that enveloped the creature, flipping it violently onto its back.
Seizing the opportunity, he stepped forward and delivered a powerful punch to the creature's face.
The impact was partially cushioned by its soft fur, but the blow still landed squarely on its face, sending it rolling across the ground several times.
Seeing that his attack had been effective, a look of surprise and delight spread across Feng Qi's face.
If his blood source were activated, he could easily tear this domain creature in half, annihilating it in a single round.
But in his normal state, his combat power was significantly reduced. The fact that he could even damage it felt like a remarkable achievement.
Before he could launch another attack, the domain creature, which had fallen nearby, suddenly flipped over and leaped to its feet, turning its back toward him.
Its body shuddered, and instantly, several thorn-like spines shot from its back like sharp swords, hurtling toward him.
Fortunately, his reaction was swift. He unleashed his psychokinesis, projecting it outward in a sweeping wave.
The thorns, blocked by the psychokinetic barrier, halted in mid-air about a meter from him.
With a flick of his wrist, he reversed the momentum, sending the thorns flying back to re-embed themselves in the domain creature's spine.
To his astonishment, the creature suddenly sprang over two meters into the air, emitting a piercing shriek.
"Hahaha! This one's weak enough. I like it!"
Realizing he still held the advantage against this domain creature, he couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Pathetic!
Ignoring the Narrator's mockery, he began manipulating his psychokinesis to engage the creature in combat.
Throughout the fight, he repeatedly used his psychokinesis to flip the domain creature onto its back, then charged forward to deliver a heavy punch straight to its face.
Combining psychokinesis with heavy punches proved to be a relatively efficient way to conserve mental energy.
Whenever the domain creature shook its back to release thorns, he would use psychokinesis to force them back into its body.
If the creature charged at him in a rage, he would immediately retreat, using psychokinesis to restrict its speed.
Through this battle, Feng Qi grasped a fundamental truth:
The art of combat lies in the dance of push and pull.
Hmph, a clever idea. Why don't you try pulling that off with little black?
"Then tell little black to come out!"
This Future Line followed the path of confronting the Technology Research Institute, so he doubted little black would pursue him in this Dream Realm.
Perhaps little black had been strangled in its cradle before it could even be born.
Young man, you underestimate the heavens and earth. Just wait, I'll call little black right now. When it comes to slice you up, you can show me your "art of push and pull" then!
Ignoring the Narrator's taunts, he used psychokinesis to flip the hedgehog-like domain creature onto its back again. He took three steps forward and delivered a brutal right hook to its already bloodied face.
After landing the punch, he immediately retreated to maintain his distance.
To his surprise, the domain creature remained motionless after the punch, its stubby limbs splayed upward as it lay unmoving on the ground.
Despite this, Feng Qi remained vigilant.
He strongly suspected the creature was feigning death, preparing to ambush him. If it were truly dead, a Blood Mist Cluster should have appeared on its body.
To test his theory, he picked up a stone and tossed it at the creature's face.
One stone, two stones, five stones...
As he continued throwing, the domain creature suddenly let out a piercing shriek, flipped over, and lunged at him.
Hahaha, it's furious! Keep teasing it!
The Narrator, who had been observing the battle, burst into laughter.
Feng Qi, already prepared, swiftly retreated, using his psychokinesis to intermittently slow the creature's pursuit, aiming to kill it while conserving as much mental energy as possible.
Though the creature possessed sharp claws and fangs, it couldn't touch him, posing no real threat.
After a chase, the creature abruptly turned and fled.
At that moment, the psychokinetic force that had been slowing its pursuit transformed into a pulling force, dragging it back into Feng Qi's artistic dance of evasion.
After more than twenty minutes, it finally exhausted its stamina.
When Feng Qi's fist slammed into its face once more, the domain creature's body trembled and went completely still.
A cluster of blood mist then emerged from its body and burrowed into Feng Qi's own.
His previously withered heart regained a trace of qi blood.
Summoning his status panel, he discovered he had acquired a brand-new ability:
[Thorns LV1 (Upgradeable Prefix Title)]: 1% of the physical contact damage you receive is converted into a qi blood shockwave and reflected back at the attacker. The strength of the reflection depends on your physical constitution and the attacker's damage output. (Physical contact damage exceeding your endurance cannot be reflected.)
After reviewing the description of his innate ability, Feng Qi realized he had acquired a physical contact-based damage reflection skill.
Clap, clap! Another excellent skill for the muscle-bound brute archetype! I think this skill has tremendous growth potential. As long as your physique is strong enough, you could stand still and let melee domain creatures attack you, and they'd kill themselves from the reflected damage!
"Useless," he muttered, rolling his eyes. "Why would I stand still and let domain creatures tear at me? My goal is to kill enemies without getting hurt."
Killing the domain creature had only earned him 38 bloodline evolution points. He still needed 110 more points to reach the next upgrade.
He decided to rest first to recover his mental energy, then have the Narrator help him find weaker domain creatures to continue hunting.
As long as little black wasn't around, he had plenty of time to grow stronger.
Just then, a deafening roar suddenly echoed from the sky.
He turned toward the sound and saw the once-distinct boundary between the domain world and the Real World beginning to twist violently. The domain world seemed to be accelerating its devour of the Real World.
The Blood Moon also began to exert its influence, forcing the sun to tilt toward the opposite horizon, creating the illusion that the world was turning upside down.
At the same time, he noticed a massive aircraft rising from the direction of Star City Shelter, apparently observing the domain world's anomalies.
Good grief, is the end of the world coming?
Hearing the Narrator's words, he couldn't help but feel a surge of anxiety.
He wasn't ready to witness the destruction of Human Civilization with his own eyes.
(End of the Chapter)
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